Saudi consul leaves Turkey; police start search of residence

Istanbul – Saudi Arabia's consul general in Istanbul has left for Riyadh just an hour before Turkish police started a search of his residence, according to state broadcaster TRT.

Mohammad al-Otaibi left Turkey on a commercial flight at 5 pm (2 pm GMT), TRT reported, adding the consul's family was still in Istanbul. An hour later, police entered the consul's residence in Istanbul as part of the investigation into the disappearance of Saudi dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Turkish and Saudi teams had finished an hours-long search of the consulate earlier in the day, taking soil samples from the garden, according to Turkish media.